Iran will start its campaign with a match against Iraq on Friday at the Main Arena, in Pattaya, Thailand.

“Two days ago we saw Real Madrid lost at home, and we had an experience in my country Brazil, where we lost a (FIFA) World Cup semi-final 7-1 as favorite (against Germany in 2014),” Octavio said.

“So we learn, and we know we are powerful and we have a good team with a lot of confidence, but we also have a lot of respect for our opponents. We have strong teams who are working just as hard as us,” the Brazilian added.

“We now have to concentrate 100 percent on our first match against Iraq, who is a very strong team who has made a very good preparation,” Octavio stated.